ACLU wins free speech rights for sidewalk users along Bayshore mall

Protesters and petitioners can now safely return to the sidewalks outside Bayshore Town Center, after the mall, the city of Glendale and the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin reached an agreement about First Amendment rights.

The ACLU announced the decision Tuesday.

“This is a victory for the most basic form of free speech,” said attorney Jim Gramling. “Sidewalks and parks are places where people traditionally have exchanged ideas and tried to persuade their neighbors to adopt their views. And unlike other forums for expression, like television or the radio, they can be used without charge, so anyone, rich or poor, can seek an audience there.”

The action came after mall security shooed away protesters last fall, and Glendale police arrested a person protesting outside Trader Joe's store and cited him for trespassing. The city has agreed to dismiss the citation.

The news does not apply to sidewalks on the interior of the mall, where protesters could still be subject to arrest and prosecution. But it does allow peaceful demontration and signature gathering on the sidewalks that border the mall along Port Washington Road, Silver Spring Dr. and Lydell Ave.

Lawyers Holden Brooks and Michael Halfenger also volunteered on the case for the ACLU.

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